Half nurses do not have time to give proper care

More than half of nurses in Scotland do not have enough time to provide the level of care they would like, a new survey has found.

Almost half said the care was not at the level they would want to receive as a patient.

The findings were drawn from a survey on staffing levels conducted by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN). The organisation questioned nursing staff across the UK – including 3,323 in Scotland – about their experiences on recent shifts.

Preliminary findings released in July revealed that half of respondents in Scotland reported patient care was compromised on their most recent shift due to staffing shortages.

The full survey results also show that 54 per cent of nurses did not have enough time to provide the level of care they would like, while 38 per cent did not feel satisfied with the quality of care.

Asked if the care was at the level they would wish receive as a patient, 46 per cent disagreed. A third – 34 per cent – of those surveyed said lack of time had resulted in them leaving necessary care undone. Meanwhile 61 per cent said they worked additional time on their shift – on average an extra 46 minutes.